Proverbs 1

The Usefulness of Proverbs

1 The ^aproverbs of Solomon ^bthe son of David, king of Israel:

2 To know ^cwisdom and instruction,
To discern the sayings of ^dunderstanding,
3 To ^ereceive instruction in wise behavior,
^fRighteousness, justice, and integrity;
4 To give ^gprudence to the naive,
To the youth ^hknowledge and discretion,
5 A wise person will hear and ⁱincrease in learning,
And a ^jperson of understanding will acquire wise counsel,
6 To understand a proverb and a saying,
The words of the wise and their ^kriddles.

7 ^lThe fear of the Lord is the beginning of knowledge;
Fools despise wisdom and instruction.

The Enticement of Sinners

8 ^mListen, my son, to your father’s instruction,
And ⁿdo not ignore your mother’s teaching;
9 For they are a ^ograceful wreath for your head
And ^pnecklaces for your neck.
10 My son, if sinners ^qentice you,
^rDo not consent.
11 If they say, “Come with us,
Let’s ^slie in wait for blood,
Let’s ^tambush the innocent without cause;
12 Let’s ^uswallow them alive like Sheol,
Even whole, like those who ^vgo down to the pit;
13 We will find all kinds of precious wealth,
We will fill our houses with plunder;
14 Throw in your lot ▼

▼Lit in the midst of us

with us;
We will all have one money bag,”
15 My son, ^xdo not walk on the way with them.
^yKeep your feet from their path,
16 For ^ztheir feet run to evil,
And they are quick to shed blood.
17 Indeed, it is ▼

▼Lit in vain

useless to spread the baited net
In the sight of any ▼

▼Lit possessor of wing

bird;
18 But they ^aclie in wait for their own blood;
They ambush their own lives.
19 Such are the ways of everyone who ^admakes unjust gain;
It takes away the life of its possessors.

Wisdom Warns

20 ^aeWisdom shouts in the street,
She ▼

▼Lit gives

raises her voice in the public square;
21 At the head of the noisy streets she cries out;
At the entrance of the gates in the city she declares her sayings:
22 “How long, you ^agnaive ones, will you love simplistic thinking?
And how long will ^ahscoffers delight themselves in scoffing
And fools ^aihate knowledge?
23 “Turn to my rebuke,
Behold, I will ^ajpour out my spirit on you;
I will make my words known to you.
24 “Because ^akI called and you ^alrefused,
I ^amstretched out my hand and no one paid attention;
25 And you ^anneglected all my advice
And did not ^aowant my rebuke;
26 I will also ^aplaugh at your ^aqdisaster;
I will mock when your ^ardread comes,
27 When your dread comes like a storm
And your disaster comes like a ^aswhirlwind,
When distress and anguish come upon you.
28 “Then they will ^atcall on me, but I will not answer;
They will ^auseek me diligently but will not find me,
29 Because they ^avhated knowledge
And did not choose the fear of the Lord.
30 “They ^awdid not accept my advice,
They disdainfully rejected every rebuke from me.
31 “So they shall ^axeat of the fruit of their own way,
And be ^ayfilled with their own schemes.
32 “For the ^azfaithlessness of the naive will kill them,
And the complacency of fools will destroy them.
33 “But ^bawhoever listens to me will live securely
And will be at ease from the dread of evil.”